​Sobeys Kincardine grocery workers prepare to strike

More than 120 Unifor members at Sobeys Kincardine could be on strike, effective 9 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 7, if the employer does not come to the table with a fair agreement.

That’s the word from the union, in a press release issued Thursday.

“Our union is here to deliver improvements in pay and working conditions across the board for grocery workers,” says Lana Payne, Unifor national president. “We expect Sobeys to do as Metro and Loblaws have done and meet our members’ expectations.”

Currently, full-time workers hired after 2017 must pay 50 per cent of premiums on all benefits. The union is seeking enhanced benefits and a new benefit program for part-time workers at Sobeys. Reduced premiums and enhanced benefits, including those for part-time workers, exist at Unifor-represented grocery stores, such as Metro and No Frills.

“There is absolutely no reason a highly profitable company like Sobeys can’t provide decent work, benefits, and pay — workers are ready to strike to demand wages that address the serious affordability crisis they face,” says Gord Currie, Local 414 president. “Big grocers like Metro and No Frills eventually came to the table with serious offers that workers could accept, and now it’s time for Sobeys to do the same.”

Michael Medline, chief executive officer of Empire Company Ltd. which owns Sobeys and other supermarket chains, testified before Parliament, Dec. 5, to a committee studying food inflation amidst price gouging allegations and growing concerns around a lack of competition in Canada’s grocery sector.

In the event of a strike, front-line grocery workers ask that customers show their support by respecting picket lines and shopping elsewhere.